English Wordbook/L
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< English Wordbook
Staff L of the English Wordbook.
Basic abbreviations: att'd=attested, OE=Old English, NHG=New High German, Du.=Dutch
For a full list of etymological and other abbreviations used in these wordlists, see Forshortenings.
| English | Word Class | Anglish | ||
| Attested | Not attested | |||
| labo(u)r | vb | work, swink, slog, strive | arveth | |
| labo(u)r | n | work, slog, char
(med): childbirth | - | |
| labo(u)r, unit of | n | chore, charfack | - | |
| labo(u)rer | n | worker | blue hem | |
| laboratory | n | workshop, workhall | - | |
| laborious | adj | backbreaking, burdensome | - | |
| labyrinth | n | maze | - | |
| lacerate | vb | cut | snithe | |
| lackadaisical | adj | lackadaisy, listless, lazy | - | |
| lacklustre | adj | dim, dull, leaden, lifeless, dead, brightless | - | |
| lactose | n | - | milksweet | |
| lactose intolerance | n | - | milksweet unthole | |
| lacuna | n | dearth | gapfall | |
| lager (beer) | n | - | lairbeer/ lair beer | |
| lagoon | n | sealock | coastlake (cf. Du. kustmeer) | |
| lambaste | vb | berate, flog, scathe, upbraid | flay | |
| lament | vb | mourn, weep, yammer | norn (<OE gnornan) cwithe (<OE cwithan) beweep (<OE bewepan) | |
| lamp | n | light | chell (OE ciella, OHG kella), crusie, lightvat | |
| lampion | n | - | lightvat | |
| language | n | tung, speech | rerd, leid | |
| languish | vb | pine, dwindle, droop, ebb, lessen, wane, wither, weaken, wear away, dwine | - | |
| lanolin | n | - | wool wax, wool fat | |
| lantern | n | - | lightdecker | |
| lapidary | n | - | gem-cutter, stone-cutter, gem-shaper, stone-shaper | |
| lapse | n | fluff, slip, screwup, backslide | dwild (<OE 'error') | |
| large | adj | big, broad, mickle | - | |
| largely | adj | mostly | - | |
| Larissa* | n | - | Lovely (*<Greek laros) | |
| lasagna | n | - | noodlesheet | |
| lascivious | adj | lustful | - | |
| laser | n | - | lightningbeam
lightningstreal (streal from OE stræl "arrow", cf. NHG Strahl, Du. straal "ray") | |
| laserprinter | n | - | leam forlayer | |
| lasso | n | snare | - | |
| Latin | n/adj | - | Leden (<OE Læden/Leden)
Ledenish (<OE Lædenisc/Ledenisc) | |
| Latvia | n | - | Leedland, Ledeland ('Latvia' comes from NHG 'Leute') | |
| launch | vb | fire | werp | |
| launder | vb | wash, cleanse | furb | |
| laundrette | n | washhouse | furby's | |
| laundry | n | wash, washing | furbing | |
| lava | n | stonesmelt, fireslime, stonedough | ||
| laxative | n | - | loosener | |
| lay (poem/song) | n | - | yed (<OE gid/ged) | |
| layman | n | newbie, dabbler, beginner | byfellow | |
| LCD | n | - | frostoutplay | |
| lease | vb | let | - | |
| leash | n | lead, tether | - | |
| lecture | n | reading | - | |
| lecturer | n | reader | lorespeaker | |
| lederhosen | n | - | leatherhose | |
| Leeuwarden, NL | n | - | Leeworth (cf. Fris. "Ljouwert"), Leewardine (modeled on Bredwardine, UK) | |
| leg | n | shank | - | |
| legacy | n | bequest | (great): ermenleave (<OE eormenlāf)
afterleaving(ship) (cf. Du. nalatenschap) | |
| legal | adj | lawful | - | |
| legalise | vb | - | belaw, berighten, tholingly | |
| legend | n | folktale, holysaga | - | |
| legible | adj | - | readly | |
| legislator | n | lawmaker, lawgiver | - | |
| legislature | n | lawmaking body | - | |
| legitimate | adj | rightful, (of birth) fullborn, lawful | - | |
| leisure | n | free-time, time off, holiday, rest, spare time, freedom | faining, list | |
| leisure | adj | free, busiless, off | - | |
| leisure, have | vb | rest, loaf, while away the time | fain, list | |
| lemon | n | - | sourapple | |
| lemur | n | - | scareape, stareape, ghostape | |
| lenitive | adj | soothing | milding | |
| lepidoptera | n | moths, flinders (butterflies) | - | |
| leporine | n | hare | - | |
| lepton | n | - | lightmote | |
| lesbian | n | dyke (slang) | - | |
| -let | suff | -ling | - | |
| lethal | adj | deadly | - | |
| lethargic | adj | sluggish, listless | sleeple | |
| lethargy | n | listlessness, sluggishness | sleepleness | |
| letter (character) | n | rune, staff, stave | - | |
| letter (writ) | n | - | errandwrit, errandbook (<OE ǽrendbóc) | |
| leukemia | n | - | blood canker | |
| leukocyte | n | - | white bloodcell | |
| level | n | - | flak (Fries., see Du. vlak)
tool: gauge, tier, emnet (<O.E) | |
| leverage | n | swape | - | |
| leveret | n | hareling | - | |
| lexicon | n | wordhoard (<OE wordhord), wordlist | - | |
| liable | adj | - |
law: linkworthy | |
| liberal | adj | - | free-hearted, open-handed, givesome | |
| liberalism | n | - | freewardness | |
| libertarian(ism) | n/adj | - | freesom(reder/faith) | |
| liberate | vb | free | befree (<OE befreogan, cf. NHG befreien), loose, let go
lease (<OE aliesan 'to let loose, free, deliver, liberate') hredd (<OE hreddan 'take away, save, liberate' | |
| liberation | n | - | befreeing | |
| liberty | n | freedom, free will | frelse (<OE freols) | |
| library | n | bookhouse, bookhoard | bookhall | |
| license | n | leave | - | |
| lichen | n | lungwort | - | |
| lieutenant | n | steadholder | - | |
| lieutenant, second | n | shavetail | - | |
| ligature | n | belt, binding, strap, string | - | |
| Limbo | name | - | Hell Edge (<Latin limbus, edge) | |
| limbo | n | - | neitherworld | |
| limerence | n | crush | - | |
| limit | n | bound, threshold, cap, stint | - | |
| limit | vb | bound, cap, stint, narrow | - | |
| limitation | n | cramp | - | |
| lineage | n | blood-ties, house, strain, seed | strind
offcome (cf. Du. afkomst ) | |
| linear | adj | straight(wise) | - | |
| lingerie | n | knickerwear, women's underwear, smallclothes | - | |
| lingua franca | n | shared tung | binding tung | |
| linguistics | n | - | speechlore, speechwitship | |
| linoleum | n | - | corksail | |
| lion | n | - | lewcat, manecat | |
| lipid | n | - | lynd | |
| liquid | n | - | bree, wettock, flowstuff | |
| liquid | adj | flowsome | - | |
| liquor | n | strongdrink (cf. Du. sterkedrank) | - | |
| litany | n | - | beesong (cf. Ic. bænasöngur) | |
| literary | adj | written | - | |
| literature | n | - | booklore, bookware, bookcraft, the written word, writings, written works, writcraft | |
| lithography | n | - | stone-forlaying | |
| littoral | adj | - | searim, coastly | |
| liturgy | n | - | leedwork (calque of Grk. leit-urgia), | |
| lizard | n | - | athex (<OE aðexe) | |
| lobster | n | crayfish, crawfish | - | |
| local | adj | - | steadly, stowly | |
| locality | n | shire, neighbourhood | bystead | |
| locate | vb | find by chance: come upon | - | |
| location, approx. | n | whereabouts | - | |
| locomotive | n | - | draughtwain | |
| lodge | n | inn, bergh, guesthouse, bed & breakfast; watchman's hut, shed, gatehouse, townhouse | cote | |
| lodge | vb | dwell | stow, ern (<OE ærn) | |
| lodger | n | boarder, roomer | board & roomer, homesteader | |
| logarithme | n | - | splittel | |
| logic | n | - | rethemete, flitcraft | |
| logo | n | brandmark | - | |
| -logy, -log, -logue | suff | -lore, -craft | -frod (cf. Ic. jarðfræði 'earthfrod' ~ geology; OE frod 'wise') | |
| longitude | n | length | - | |
| loquacious | adj | feather-tunged, gabby | speakle | |
| lounge | n | living room, sitting room | - | |
| lounge | vb | idle, lie, moon | - | |
| loyal | adj | true-hearted, trothen | - | |
| loyalist | n | stalwart | - | |
| loyalty | n | true-heartedness, fayful | - | |
| lucifer | n | - | lightbringer, firesplinter | |
| lumpenproleteriat, the | n | - | the rabble, the underrabble, the ragamuffins | |
| lunacy | n | moonmadness | - | |
| lunar | adj | moonly | - | |
| lunatic | n | madman | - | |
| luster | n | gloss | - | |
| Lutheranism | n | - | Lutherdom | |
| lycanthropy | n | - | warewolf-sickness, shapeshifter-sickness | |
| lynx | n | - | lox (<OE 'lox', <PIE 'leuk', light) | |
| lysosome | n | - | selfkillbag | |
